NEW CASTLE — Upon his departure from the U.S. Senate, Judd Gregg leaves behind what University of New Hampshire officials are calling a "global legacy."

And it was his many years of working with the university and securing funding for its programs that was the focus of a celebration at the Marine Research Complex Monday.

"We could hold this event in any place in New Hampshire and think of things to mention about Senator Gregg's career," said UNH President Mark Huddleston in his opening address, acknowledging Gregg's help in funding the Mt. Washington AIRMAP facility to study New England regional air quality and in securing more than $400 million for UNH-based programs.

Among other honors, Huddleston announced the renaming of the Marine Research Complex, which is located at Fort Constitution in New Castle, to bear Judd Gregg's name.

"This facility represents so well his devotion to the state partnerships and wide resource management," Huddleston said.

Gregg has been a steward of the Coastal Response Research Center (CRRC), the Crimes Against Children Research Center (CCRC), the Joint Hydrographic Center and the Northeast Consortium, among other programs that have had far-reaching effects on the region and world.

Nancy Kinner, co-director of the CRRC, praised Gregg for his creation of center that would function to help the country face oil spills. And after the historic Deepwater Horizon spill in April, Kinner said he was "right on the mark.

"He brought a group together at UNH to create a system that was used as a common operational picture during the Deepwater Horizon spill," she said. "He wanted us to go out and work with people all across the country to get the best results possible."

Gregg also secured funding in 1999 through the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association for the Joint Hydrographic Center at UNH, which center Co-director Andy Armstrong said has had a significant impact on the university for ocean mapping capabilities.

"It has grown and is the unquestioned leader in seafloor mapping in the U.S.," Armstrong said. "Without your support, Senator Gregg, there would be no Joint Hydrographic Center and the U.S. would be trailing, instead of leading, in this seafloor mapping technology."

He was lauded for his part in creating the Great Bay Research Reserve and the Great Bay Wildlife Refuge, as well as the consortium, which helps track where fish are moving and how much are being caught, saving fisherman time and money.

But Gregg humbly credited the university for bringing the initiatives to fruition.

"The success emanates from the university," he said, "and that's what gives us the competitive edge."

He said after the event that the Great Bay reserve and refuge are his proudest accomplishments as they helped dodge a fairly certain future for the estuary.

"It would have been developed," he said of the land. "We caught it just before the wave of development. It's a true success story and it really is a defining physical feature for our state."

Gregg also attributed the university's programs to his wife, Kathy.

"So much of what we've been doing in this state comes from Kathy," he said, explaining her love of the sea.

David Finkelhor, director of the CCRC, credited Gregg as being one of the chief congressional advocates of addressing child exploitation, having funded and founded the CCRC and creating the Cyber Tipline and Internet Crimes Against Children task forces so law enforcement can better respond to Internet crimes against children.

"We've had extensive success in taking down child molesters and pornographers," Finkelhor said.

Gregg said he doesn't know what's next for him, but did admit he will "do what Kathy tells me to do."

Finkelhor said, "Your willingness to take risks means you deserve a thank you from all your beneficiaries — the children of the world, and the fish of the world."